Company of Heroes 2 gets two free maps, first Theatre of War update teased

Remember the good old days of a few months before the release of Company of Heroes 2? Life was simpler then. You'd visit your favourite PC gaming website, safe in the knowledge that Relic would have cooked up a new trailer for their RTS sequel, probably showing a Russian conscript looking sad. Here, we get to indulge in some early-2013 nostalgia, with a new CoH2 trailer, touring one of two free maps that have today been added to the game.

Rostov, the trailered battleground, is based on the 1941 Battle of Rostov, fought between Germans and Soviets around Rostov-on-Don and the Don river. Also added is the Kharkov map, based on the Ukrainian city, which was the setting for many battles during the war.

It's not just the multiplayer that Relic are working on. In this month's " Producer's Letter " to the community, Greg Wilson teased the unveiling of the first major update to Theatre of War mode, which will add a new "mini-pack", focusing on the Germans in 1942. The update will be made available for free to Collector's Edition owners, and as DLC pack for the standard edition. Further details are due later this month.

Wilson also notes that Relic are preparing for the release of the 1.0 version of their mapping tool, giving community modders the chance to create their own battlefields.